Michael Vazquez (he/him) is the Founding Partner of The Maiden Group, a social impact agency & research and consulting firm facilitating partnerships that serve as a vanguard against autocracy and in pursuit of an inclusive democracy. A public theologian and organizing, communications and policy strategist, Michael also currently serves as an Advisor at Public Private Strategies. Michael formerly served as the Religion & Faith Director at the Human Rights Campaign, Senior Communications Strategist at the USAID Office of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, and Founder of Brave Commons. With his roots in community organizing, Michael has served across civil society on a diverse policy agenda in pursuit of creating a more just and equitable society. Throughout all his work, Michael has supported secular civil society, faith-based organizations, and political and philanthropic leaders in understanding the growing threat of Christian Nationalism and other autocratic movements both in the U.S. and abroad, and helped craft strategies to combat extremism and defend democracy.

During the 2020 Presidential Campaign, Michael served as an advisor to the faith engagement team for the Biden-Harris Campaign, and during his time at the Human Rights Campaign, he worked alongside the Biden Administration on pro-democracy initiatives,  LGBTQ policy, COVID-19 pandemic response, as well as  housing and poverty elimination policy. As a member of the Public Private Strategies Team, Michael has supported a wide-ranging portfolio, including supporting the Public Private Strategies Institute where he serves as an advisor to the Emerging Voice Table, a multidisciplinary funding table that aims to engage and empower voices (small business, rural, and faith) not traditionally engaged in public policy, primarily on a broad range of tax policies, including the Child Tax Credit and the Earned Income Tax Credit. At Public Private Strategies, Michael previously directed the development and launch of Build Up Local – an online tool to empower and connect business owners of color with contracting and grant opportunities related to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.  

Michael serves as an advisor to Auburn Seminary, partnering closely on the development of the National Faith Table, an interfaith ecosystem of faith-based organizations and faith leaders engaged on shared policy and pro-democracy issues. He has also served as a communications and organizing consultant to the Center for Faith, Justice, and Reconciliation, Curriculum Associates, The Expectations Project, Faith for Justice, and Faith Forward (formerly Faith 2020). In 2020, Michael was a District of Columbia delegate to the Black National Convention convened by the Movement for Black Lives and in 2021, Michael was named by the Center for American Progress as a “Faith Leader to Watch". Michael holds a Masters in Theological Studies from Duke University's Divinity School, and his work has appeared in National Catholic Reporter, Georgetown University's Berkley Forum for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, and USAToday.